Welcome to CAMS at Penn State!

Join Us!

The Department of Classics and Ancient Mediterranean Studies (CAMS) is the hub at Penn State for the study of the ancient Mediterranean world. Whether one is studying at University Park or abroad, CAMS at Penn State features a traditional humanistic education, intimate access to faculty of international prominence, and state-of-the-art instructional and research tools.

CAMS is the study of ancient civilizations that arose and flourished around the Mediterranean basin (including Egypt, Greece, Rome, Anatolia, Israel, Mesopotamia, and North Africa) from the “cradle of civilization” in Mesopotamia (ca. 4000 BCE) to the end of Greco-Roman antiquity (ca. 600 CE). CAMS investigates the whole scope of the ancient Mediterranean world and trains students to interpret the linguistic and archaeological evidence of the greatest ancient cultures.

An understanding of CAMS is absolutely fundamental to an excellent education in the humanities. The linguistic roots, literary traditions, and physical monuments of ancient Mediterranean cultures offer vital insights for modern civilization.

CAMS at Penn State offers instruction in ancient languages- including Sumerian, Egyptian, Hittite, Akkadian, Hebrew, Greek, and Latin. We read the literatures of these civilizations in the original languages as well as in translation and illuminate the transmission of these texts from antiquity through the Middle Ages to the present. Our department also trains students in the methods of archaeology and archaeological interpretation with the goal of reconstructing the social practices and historical development of different peoples in the ancient Mediterranean.

CAMS is by nature interdisciplinary, which is to say that we are concerned with the histories, religions, laws, economies, arts, philosophies, and architecture of the ancient world. Typically, CAMS students participate in one of the department’s stellar international study-abroad programs. Programs in Athens and Rome enable students to visit the famous sites and museums of Greco-Roman antiquity; and for budding archaeologists, there are Penn State University faculty led archaeological excavation programs and field schools in Egypt and Israel. Other department-sponsored international programs are available, including travel to major archaeological sites and museums in Turkey and Israel.

Please feel free to contact us with any questions you may have regarding CAMS at Penn State. We hope to hear from you soon!

Department of Classics and Ancient Mediterranean Studies The Pennsylvania State University The College of the Liberal Arts 108 Weaver Building University Park, PA 16802 814-865-8851 (phone) 814-863-7840 (fax)cams@psu.edu